Effect of the Rings: A Visual Story Design Comparing Three Chemical Characters
| Authors | |
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| Year of publication | 2023 |
| Type | Chapter of a book |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | For millennia humans have interacted with a range of chemical substances that are an integral part of human history and culture. The chemical characteristics of the three similar-looking chemical species psilocybin, nicotine, and caffeine have remarkably different biological effects. The narratives of these chemical characters are compelling—their role traverses the unobservable submicroscopic world, influences our biological essence, and impacts societal values and scientific judgement. Visual storytelling through modern display technologies offers an educational method to communicate the nature and effect of these chemical actors. Biological information that transcends multi-directionally and constantly from submicroscopic through to macroscopic processes can be made accessible and meaningful to students and the public. In doing so, links are forged between scientific knowledge and the manner we view these chemical forms from a human and societal context. In attempting to capture these complexities, the aim of this chapter is to conceptualise and design a visual story to communicate the effect of psilocybin, nicotine, and caffeine on humans for public engagement. Whilst remarkably similar in chemical structure, these chemical species have dramatically different psychological and physiological effects on the human body. At the same time, human interaction with these substances is intertwined with historical associations, cultural norms, as well as perceived and enacted taboos. |
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